Actually, it is about 75 miles (120 km) from Montreal to Mt. Mansfield, whereas by car it is around 100 mi.

Now I see what you have done. By pointing the antenna horizontally it works more like a "Yagi" or folded dipole with parasitic elements, The internet is awash with designs both vertical and horizontal. Of course, the best is to experiment with design and position depending on location and frequency range.

I know. that film is a "classic", and I'm old enough to remember when it first came out. For some reason, I've never seen it :-) "Casablanca" is still one of my favorites. Cheers, oj

You may remember that this was sold by Radio Shack like 30 years ago. It used to sit on top of a Sony 20" CRT that had a huuuge box. When we got the 32" LCD there was no flat surface to sit on. So I just had a swing arm lamp and screwed a pivot block to the side of a convenient wall cabinet in our south-facing second floor bedroom. It needs this flexibility as it is sensitive to direction/position. It easily picks up all the local (Montreal area) VHF/UHF channels, and used to get about 5 channels (2 PBS, CBS, NBC & Fox) from the U.S., with the 30 db gain amplifier. However, this eventually burnt out. I meant to get a new one but our local supplier was out of stock. Vermont PBS pulls in without amplifier. Since then I rarely watch TV at all. Just enjoy browsing the "In...

You may remember that this was sold by Radio Shack like 30 years ago. It used to sit on top of a Sony 20" CRT that had a huuuge box. When we got the 32" LCD there was no flat surface to sit on. So I just had a swing arm lamp and screwed a pivot block to the side of a convenient wall cabinet in our south-facing second floor bedroom. It needs this flexibility as it is sensitive to direction/position. It easily picks up all the local (Montreal area) VHF/UHF channels, and used to get about 5 channels (2 PBS, CBS, NBC & Fox) from the U.S., with the 30 db gain amplifier. However, this eventually burnt out. I meant to get a new one but our local supplier was out of stock. Vermont PBS pulls in without amplifier. Since then I rarely watch TV at all. Just enjoy browsing the "Instructables" and other internet stuff.

Hi Mary, Nice project, and video. We might add that for private use, it could be made from discarded furniture found on Montreal streets. Here are some pics of my wood rack, fridge stand and IKEA-type cupboard. As you say, the little scraps can be used for glue blocks, etc.

Hi robo, as akatengu mentioned, this brings back memories from 70 years ago of watching my father and brother rebuilding AC motors in our home workshop. During and post WW2, this was a good business, as industry concentrated on war supply. One thing mentioned, as can be seen in your before photos, are the insulating paper tubes in the slots. My father made a kind of jig with two small wheels on a crankshaft, which would indent the paper with parallel lines for folding. After the coils were in place, he inserted a thin wooden stick at the top of the slot to snug it down. finally, he brushed on a GE product called "Glyptal", a kind of thick red paint, and "cooked" it. They also rewound armatures, etc.

Looking at a portable (battery) DVD player, the hinged cover is just that. The reader parts are in plain view in the base sedtion, and therefore facing the underside of the disc, which goes in "picture side" up. Also the commercial DVD cleaning wipes, e.g., Maxell, specify wiping radially from center to edge.

Nice job, and practical! Maybe the gluing of the sections could be omitted if just a couple extra screws were added at those last joints. As you mentioned, one should foresee the eventual need to disassemble for moving out, Just saying :-)

What worked for me was a length of insulated 2-conductor indoor house wiring cable. It is flexible enough to follow a gentle curve, but stiff enough to push through a bad clog. The drain hoses through the roof pillars should be at least 3/6" I.D. If available one could also try an electrician's steel fish line wire.

Here's a way to give your antenna three-way position adjustment. Find an old swing-arm desk lamp and anchor the base end to wall or cabinet. Then attach your antenna where the lamp shade was hung. As already mentioned by other posters, please be sure that the TV can receive the digital signal

Great advice, including the appropriate safety precautions. A friend of mine got extremely frustrated with the stuck brake bleeder, to the point of just living with soft pedal. The parts are relatively delicate and awkward to work on. Alternative solution is to destruct, remove and replace.

Would presume that If there were "feedback" from a "Smart" TV (1984 style) in typical consumer use, it would have to be linked via cable or satellite. The way out of this is to pick up broadcasts the old fashioned way by antennae, which would only work in one direction. However, this project as I understand it, is a standalone "mirror", so it should not need any links to outside channels. Would leave it up to the "ible" followers to devise whatever modifications they would see fit to do.

Had no idea it is, or was, a "Smart TV". The parts list just says "monitor". If its main function is to be a "mirror", could we assume that the camera, built-in or otherwise, would capture an optically/digitally high quality image"?

Here's a suggestion I have no intention of trying myself. What if you added a top wooden crosspiece between the miters and mounted a mini cam behind it? Hook it up to the monitor and you would have an actual image rather than a mirror image - then wouldn't need the mirror glass. With a little extra hardware/software, the image could be adjusted to make it "slimmer" :-)

True, a power outage would be a problem needing a battery back-up, and perhaps people would prefer to see their mirror image, unless there was a switchable circuit mod. As mentioned below, the picture should have good optical quality - better than most selfies.

Have done it this way among others, having worked on old houses. What you are saying is to make a dummy (1" x 1-1/2") softwood furring strip that is longer (say, 3") than the hole, and sliding it in behind. Then hold it in position across the hole, drive & countersink two drywall screws through the wall & into the wood. Now you have a "bridge" with which to attach/support the patch, which can be any convenient shape. Then fit the patch & anchor it with drywall screw(s), finish in usual way. Some time ago I did a repair where a plumber cut through a ceiling section about 2' x 3' which severed three furring strips. The solution was to bridge the furrings by joining with 3/4" x 3/4" corner angles (normally used on drywall corners). There are s...

Have done it this way among others, having worked on old houses. What you are saying is to make a dummy (1" x 1-1/2") softwood furring strip that is longer (say, 3") than the hole, and sliding it in behind. Then hold it in position across the hole, drive & countersink two drywall screws through the wall & into the wood. Now you have a "bridge" with which to attach/support the patch, which can be any convenient shape. Then fit the patch & anchor it with drywall screw(s), finish in usual way. Some time ago I did a repair where a plumber cut through a ceiling section about 2' x 3' which severed three furring strips. The solution was to bridge the furrings by joining with 3/4" x 3/4" corner angles (normally used on drywall corners). There are so many approaches/solutions, depending on the situation. Attaching a rough sketch.

Hi Everyone, sorry if I'm a little off topic. Actually, I'm thinking of using this type of motor to drive an 8mm home movie projector, with the aim being to transfer the films to video by synchronizing the frame speeds. I haven't found anything on the site here relevant to my cause. All I'd like to know is if anyone can tell me what speed this motor roughly runs at. There is a gear reduction of 4.5 to 1. The hack would be to leave the projector drive intact and just "piggy-back" an external drive by a belt or shaft coupling. The DC motor circuit would include a rheostat. So the question is can the rpms be matched without a complicated mechanical setup? BTW, I contacted the motor manufacturer with the printed numbers, and they gave me a non-answer - like it was some military se...

Hi Everyone, sorry if I'm a little off topic. Actually, I'm thinking of using this type of motor to drive an 8mm home movie projector, with the aim being to transfer the films to video by synchronizing the frame speeds. I haven't found anything on the site here relevant to my cause. All I'd like to know is if anyone can tell me what speed this motor roughly runs at. There is a gear reduction of 4.5 to 1. The hack would be to leave the projector drive intact and just "piggy-back" an external drive by a belt or shaft coupling. The DC motor circuit would include a rheostat. So the question is can the rpms be matched without a complicated mechanical setup? BTW, I contacted the motor manufacturer with the printed numbers, and they gave me a non-answer - like it was some military secret.

This process can be frustrating when any part of the procedure is neglected. It used to be much easier when there was some lead content in the solder. Also, note that in existing circuits, any residual water must be drained, as it will absorb too much heat, and prevent flow of the solder. Also, one can buy a battery terminal brush with a "stem" that will scrub the insides of the fittings. This is important when re-using old fittings, or if the joint needs to be redone after a failed attempt.

Well, I did it! Here's a tip learned from the experience. Should use a water soluble marker on the vinyl. I used some white wax thing I had on hand and the solvent to clean it off may have caused the edges to curl slightly. However, it works in principle. I could make another one now that I have the pattern. Also it could be made "blacker" with something like "Armor All" or black shoe polish.

Well, I did it! Here's a tip learned from the experience. Should use a water soluble marker on the vinyl. I used some white wax thing I had on hand and the solvent to clean it off may have caused the edges to curl slightly. However, it works in principle. I could make another one now that I have the pattern. Also it could be made "blacker" with something like "Armor All" or black shoe polish.

Nice work!! Up to now I've managed to bend sheets of 1/16" steel by clamping between 4 x 4 lumber, and a little "persuasion", to repair parts of rusted car floor pans. Your concept could be scaled up a little for larger applications. Agree with others about the angle grinder. I first bought one "on spec" and had no immediate use for it, however, for small interventions it can work like a cutting torch, say, when undoing parts of car exhausts. etc.

Agree with other posters about watching out for one's fingers - a mishap only needs to happen once. It could be tricky to build a "professional" type guard, so at least use the push sticks. As I already have a made a table using an inverted portable saw, I see the same problem of the table thickness reducing the blade effective travel. It would be worth experimenting to see if the saw foot plate could be mounted "flush" with the table top surface. Of course, it would need to have a "relief" ledge in the table top, and perhaps some re-enforcement below deck. However, the benefit would be the capability to cut deeper, and also vary blade angle. Great visual production and narration.

Some nuts can be really "stubborn". I find that a 24" "breaker bar" (socket handle) greatly helps. Sometimes the the resistance seems so much that the socket might split or an aluminum tube will bend - blame that on the commercial garages. Putting a square of good plywood under the jack's foot plate also advisable whether you are on earth or pavement. BTW, do many cars use "Allen" type lug nuts, if that is what it looks like?

My car's OEM nuts are made to go with the imitation alloy plastic wheel caps. The steel wheels were black originally, so just gave them little red accents. Also liked your idea of using the electric drill to "power" the jack. I'll just need to buy a 17mm hex socket bit. BTW, in a small industrial machinery building company I worked for. we used mostly Allen head screws on assemblies.

Just a few words of caution. The wheel nuts may have been torqued to about 100 lb-ft by a garage, so a simple cordless drill won't work at the start. And even if you tightened them lower yourself, they may still "stick" after 6 -12 mo. I always loosen mine first with a 24" "breaker bar" (socket handle), which can generate enough torque to rock the car back and forth, so better to CHOCK ONE OR TWO OF THE BACK TIRES with blocks, bricks or rocks - anything that will stop the car from rolling.off the jack.

Some nuts can be really "stubborn". I find that a 24" "breaker bar" (socket handle) greatly helps. Sometimes the the resistance seems so much that the socket might split or an aluminum tube will bend - blame that on the commercial garages. Putting a square of good plywood under the jack's foot plate also advisable whether you are on earth or pavement.

Right you are. I'd better get on with it, especially as the sun gets lower on the horizon. I don't see the benefit of an all-black car interior, except maybe not showing dirt, however, the designers/manufacturers should always do the top of the dash flat black - even if it doesn't match the rest - just for safety's sake. Bad enough that for crash protection they made the A pillars thicker, there should not be blinding reflection off the dashboard.

Actually, for simple applications, it may be possible to use [glow in the dark] adhesive tapes, from the current consumer marketplace. Looking at the British WW2 crime/drama series "Foyle's War", they seem to have painted a white stripe on the car sides to make black cars more visible in blackouts.A simple DIY might be for a key fob, in case one drops their keys in a dark alley. Although not on a DIY scale, how about street corner signs, so people might find their way in an unfamiliar neighborhood during a blackout - I even got slightly lost in a familiar neighborhood once during a blackout. Here's hoping that other posters might come up their suggestions.

Oops, the reply above should have gone here, Will take photos when done -thanks -oj

Hate to tell you this, but...my 9 year-old car, pretty basic by today's standards, has a remote door unlock feature through the key fob. When I press the unlock button from 100 feet away, all the lights flash, and the interior lights & headlights stay on for about a minute. Pretty easy to spot. However, I did change the clunky, almost yard long, steel antenna for a "shorty" 14" - ample enough for local reception. Actually, I think that your "glow in the dark" process could have many other useful applications.

While we are at it (on simple car modifications) I'd like to share my idea for a cheap anti-glare dashboard cover, I surfed the net for what is commercially available, however, found these wanting. They are usually custom molded, and come in all sorts of colors, patterns & materials, which I would consider obtrusive dirt catchers. Problem is with today's huge raked back windshields, any light colored dash will reflect and impair forward vision. Instead of painting the dash flat black, I opted to just cover it with black imitation leather/vinyl, which can be held on with thin double-sided carpet tape.Some cutting and fitting is necessary, perhaps starting with a paper pattern. And, of course, leaving openings for air outlets and passenger side air bag. It seems foolproof, cheap and e...

While we are at it (on simple car modifications) I'd like to share my idea for a cheap anti-glare dashboard cover, I surfed the net for what is commercially available, however, found these wanting. They are usually custom molded, and come in all sorts of colors, patterns & materials, which I would consider obtrusive dirt catchers. Problem is with today's huge raked back windshields, any light colored dash will reflect and impair forward vision. Instead of painting the dash flat black, I opted to just cover it with black imitation leather/vinyl, which can be held on with thin double-sided carpet tape.Some cutting and fitting is necessary, perhaps starting with a paper pattern. And, of course, leaving openings for air outlets and passenger side air bag. It seems foolproof, cheap and easily reversible. OOPS, this sounds like an Instructable - :-)

Here's a tip I would add: check to make sure your battery post terminals are clean and tight. Don't just jiggle them - undo, inspect and/or clean & re-tighten as necessary. My solution for battery/alternator monitoring - if you do not need the cigar lighter socket or plug in a splitter, is to get a little digital voltmeter about 1" x 1" x 2" and stick it with double-sided spongy tape at a convenient spot on the dash. Just a short cord with plug from an old 12v accessory, or buy one at the auto supply. If you want to get fancy you could make a cut-out in the dash and run the wire internally to the cig lighter terminals.

OMG, that was one serious load of lint. Yikes! no way that cup would have blown through. Hope that pipe wasn't buried too deep behind wallboard. etc. Beer money? Yayyyy!! Give it up for lint? OK :-) Great instructable!